Gao Xiaosong, who used to be aggressive and criticized Dao Lang without sparing words, has now faded from people's sight.
After many years, Dao Lang is still standing tall and has once again proved his value in the music industry with "Rakshasa Sea City". Some say that this is retribution, others say that it is the impermanence of fate. But take a closer look, what did Gao Xiaosong do, and why did it end up like this?
Gao Xiaosong's current state of public opinion
At that time, Gao Xiaosong mercilessly attacked Dao Lang, obviously dismissive of his success. Today, Dao Lang has not only won high recognition from the music industry with works such as "Rakshasa Sea Market", but also gained a large number of fans and public praise. This is undoubtedly a heavy irony for Gao Xiaosong. He once stood on the moral and aesthetic "high ground" to accuse others, but now he has to face the embarrassing situation of his own judgment mistakes, and may even misjudge a talent.
In stark contrast to Dao Lang's star halo, Gao Xiaosong's reputation on the Internet almost collapsed. From negative news to various controversial remarks, Gao Xiaosong has almost become the focus of criticism of online public opinion. In particular, those people and things that he criticized or despised have now become weapons to fight back against him. Social media was filled with sarcasm and ridicule of him, and for a while, Gao Xiaosong seemed to be the target of a kind of "public execution".
Gao Xiaosong's controversial remarks
Gao Xiaosong has repeatedly made sharp and even negative comments in public about Chinese culture and the four great inventions. He believes that China's four great inventions should actually be mahjong, acupuncture, massage, and stir-fry cooking. Such remarks are undoubtedly a deep misreading of Chinese history and culture, and have also caused a lot of criticism and dissatisfaction.
Not only that, Gao Xiaosong's attitude towards foreign countries, especially the United States and Japan, also shows obvious prejudice and flattery. He once "encouraged" his countrymen to visit the "Yasukuni Shrine" in Japan, and said in his program that the United States had never robbed China of a piece of land. And he gave high praise to the social systems, cultures and even lifestyles of the two countries, but these praises were often based on one-sided or inaccurate information.
For example, on some occasions, he has praised democracy and freedom in the United States, but turned a blind eye to its profound social problems and inequalities; Similarly, his idealization of Japanese culture ignores some of the serious problems of Japanese society, such as overwork, social pressure, etc. These remarks made him the target of everyone, and netizens criticized him as a representative of "admiring foreign countries".
Legal issues and ethical disputes
In 2011, Gao Xiaosong was arrested by police for forcibly driving while drunk, resulting in four vehicles being rear-ended. Although fortunately there were no casualties, he did not escape justice.
Surprisingly, Gao Xiaosong not only did not reflect on this incident, but was quite complacent. He even made a fuss in later interviews, claiming how leisurely his life was in prison and translating the Encyclopedia Britannica.
And when the public sees his ruthless side, it is related to beautiful love. In 2000, an elderly couple exposed Gao Xiaosong's romance with their daughter Yunzi on the Internet. Although they did not approve of the relationship at the beginning, they still acquiesced to the relationship at the insistence of Gao Xiaosong and Yunzi. However, the relationship did not last long, and Gao Xiaosong soon empathized and got married. Yunzi, who lost love and hope, chose to end her life.
Regarding Yunzi's death, Gao Xiaosong claimed that everything had nothing to do with him. Such an indifferent attitude deepened people's dissatisfaction and disappointment with him. Moreover, he continued to make a series of controversial remarks in later public appearances, which eventually led to him paying a terrible price in public opinion.
Public and online reactions
In 2020, Gao Xiaosong was invited to participate in the live broadcast event held by People's Daily. Unexpectedly, he played no more than ten minutes. Because as soon as Gao Xiaosong took the stage, the comment area was full of criticism and insults against him, resulting in the live broadcast having to be urgently stopped.
The incident seemed to mark Gao's loss of popularity on the public stage. Since then, he has faded from public view.
Recently, some netizens posted a video that resembled Gao Xiaosong, asking netizens, "Which person do you say I am in the lyrics?" Undoubtedly, this provoked a wave of "righteous people" who were dissatisfied with Gao Xiaosong, and the comment section was instantly flooded with negative comments.
This series of events seems to show that Gao Xiaosong has no place to turn over in public opinion. However, this raises a bigger question: How is a public figure's reputation shaped and destroyed in the age of social media? It can only be said that Gao Xiaosong's end is self-inflicted.